Thursday, 21 March 2013

Welcome romance author, Lilliana Anderson...

Hi, Lilliana - nice to meet you! Congratulations on your latest release and tour with CLBS Promotions - happy to be a part of your tour. Fabulous cover, by the way! Okay, on with the interview...hope you enjoy your visit :)

1)What is your writing routine?

It used to be all
over the place, squeezing in as much work as I could around everything else.
But, I found that my world around me was becoming too chaotic. Now, I try to
stick to ‘office hours’, working 9-5 and then focusing on my home life around
that (as well as sneaking in a bit more writing time when the kids are in bed!
)

2)Which is your favorite romance
subgenre to read? To write?

To read, I love
Paranormal romance, I’m a big fan of Katie Macalister’s Dark Ones series –
they’re really fun weekend reads and they got me started with romance in
general.

To write, I love
Contemporary Romance, I love to explore burgeoning relationships and re-live
those ‘new love’ moments with my characters.

3)What do you expect from an
editor?

Honesty, and tough
love. I need to be told – no, that part’s shit! – so I look at it properly and
get rid of all that superfluous crap that I tend to put in there first time
around.

4)What are you working on right
now?

A novel titled
‘Alter’ – it’s about a girl who feels is blacking out and unable to recall
certain interactions with people she cares about. Her entire life is turned
upside down, until her ‘knight in shining armour’ intervenes to help her gain
some sort of control over her destiny once more.

That sounds vague,
but I don’t want to give anything away! lol

5)Your biggest piece of advice to
aspiring novelists?

Connect with other
authors online, they are a big help and inspiration while your plugging away at
your keyboard.

6)What was your favorite subject
in school and why?

Art, because I was
obsessed with sketching and working with oil pastels in high school.

7)What is your favorite dessert?

Do I have to
choose just one? Can’t I just say ‘dessert as a whole’?

Although, if I
MUST choose, I’ll go for a hot fudge sundae – LOTS of fudge J

Katrina Mahoney has a very
full life attending university to study a law degree, training for triathlons
and now she is working part time as well. She couldn’t possibly find time for a
relationship, especially after her last one ended so catastrophically.

Right now she is content
focusing on work, study and training while hanging out with her best friend
David Taylor, a womaniser with a heart of gold that would do anything for
Katrina – except watch her get hurt again.

That is, until the dashing
Elliot Roberts, a junior solicitor from her work, shows an interest in her
despite their office’s ‘No Dating’ policy.

Katrina struggles with
following her heart or following her mind and has trouble seeing where her
heart truly lies.

Warning: This title is intended for readers over the
age of 18 as it contains adult sexual situations and/or adult language which
may be considered offensive to some readers.

Priya led me down the corridor and into an open area, where
a group of PA desks were clustered, surrounded by window offices. She came to a
stop outside a small windowed office right next to the Partner’s, and tapped on
the door before opening it. A man in his early 20s looked up from his work
revealing the most vivid blue eyes I had ever seen. My breath caught a little
as I drank him in. Even through his dress shirt I could see how well muscled he
was, his face showing that smattering of stubble I loved on a man. I don’t know
how else to describe him except to say that he was beautiful; those blue eyes,
that full mouth, his light golden-brown hair and those broad shoulders! I felt
myself swoon a little but came back to reality when I noticed him arch one of
those perfect eyebrows of his at us in question.

“Sorry to interrupt Elliot but I just wanted to introduce
you to our new librarian Kat,” Priya said.

“Um, Katrina,” I said, hating having my name shortened to
that of a furry animal.

“Sorry – Katrina,” Priya corrected with a slight eye roll.

Elliot didn’t speak at first; he just sat there studying me.

My cheeks flushed involuntarily and the discomfort of being
stared at caused me to start nervously looking around the room, out of the
door; anywhere but at him.

My apparent unease seemed to make him realise he was
staring. He quickly cleared his throat and said, “Hello Katrina.” His voice was
as beautiful as the rest of him, it had a deep rumble to it that sent chills up
my spine.

I was trying desperately to be cool, so he didn’t notice my
immediate attraction. A guy like this must have women swooning all over him,
and I wasn’t going to let myself be one of them – despite his hotness. I had
met guys like him before, and it never ended well.

Despite my efforts, I didn’t manage much more than a tight
smile, a small nod and a, “Hi, um, uh, Elliot.” You sound like an idiot! my
mind told me. There was a silence after that; nobody said a word and this
awkwardness enveloped us like a thick woollen blanket while we all tried not to
make eye contact.

I felt like I needed to say something to break the silence,
“Ah…I didn’t think a junior would get a window office,” I observed, regretting
the comment the moment it left my mouth.

Elliot looked over his shoulder at the window behind him and
shrugged, “Every solicitor gets one. It comes with the office. Mine is a very
small one though.” His blue eyes met mine but revealed no emotion. I could
imagine that he must have thought I was a complete ditz! I could feel the heat
as it rose in my cheeks while moths of embarrassment churned through my
stomach.

Priya raised her eyebrows at the exchange, smiled and
commented, “Well; this was fun.” She ushered me out of his office as she told
Elliot, “Just thought you should meet Katrina so you knew what she is doing
leaving things on your desk. Enjoy your day Elliot,” she gently closed his door
and led me back towards the library. “So, your bright-red face tells me you
noticed he’s a bit of spunk huh?” she said quietly to me when we were far
enough away. I tried to act nonchalant and just shrugged my shoulders a little.
“Don’t get any ideas though, all the girls are after him but he doesn’t show
interest in any of them. There’s a strict no dating policy here and he adheres to
it; there’s a list of junior solicitors a mile long wanting to work here and I
really don’t think he is going to risk his job.”

Australian born and bred, Lilliana Anderson has always
loved to read and write considering it the best form of escapism that the world
has to offer. Besides writing Angelien's biographical trilogy, she also writes
contemporary romance and drama all set within Australia.

When she isn't writing she is a wife, and a
mother to four children. She has worked in a variety of industries and studied
humanities before transferring to commerce/law at university.